Shell extractor



March 17, 1931. w, 1 1' 1,796,757

SHELL EXTRACTOR Filed NOV. 6, 1929 NT L. fiiiz ie.

Patented Mar. 17, I931 UNIT ENT OFFECE snnm. Ezra-Aaron Applicationfiled November 6, 1929. Serial No. 405,212.

This invention relates to automatic guns and has special reference tothe means for ejecting a shell after the gun has been fired. Automaticguns have been heretoforeprovided with shell ejectors by the action ofwhich a shell was automatically thrown from the gun after the gun wasfired and these devices operated satisfactorily as long as the shell wasalways of the exact length for which the gun was primarily designed. Forvarious reasons, however, it happens that the shell is frequentlysomewhat longer than the shell the gun was intended to receive and,therefore, the ejector fails to operate suceessfully, the shell beingcaught in the end of the barrel and clogging the action. The presentinvention provides a very simple means whereby the shell will besuccessfully ejected even though it be somewhat longer than that forwhich the gun is designed. The

invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing and will behereinafter fully set forth.

In the drawing:

Figure 1 is a longitudinal section, with parts in side elevation, of somuch of a gun as is necessary to an understanding of the presentinvention,

Fig. 2 is a view, partly in horizontal section and partly in top plan,of some of the parts shown in Fig. 1,

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 2 but showing the shell partly ejected,

Fig. 4 is a rear elevation of the barrel extension with the improvedshell-ejecting cam thereon, and

Fig. 5 is an enlarged detail perspective View of the ejection camconstructed in accordance with the present invention.

In the drawing, the reference numeral 1 indicates a portion of thebarrel and 2 the barrel extension which is of the usual form. A portionof the frame is shown at 3 and the breech closure at 4. As is usual inguns of the type to which my invention is applied, the barrel extensionis provided with a longitudinal groove 5 to accommodate the extractorhook 6 upon the breech closure, which hook is extended to engage overthe flange or bead 7 at the rear end of the shell 8 and cooperate withan extractor hook 9 which engages the flange at a diametrically oppositepoint to withdraw the shell from the barrel after firing. Seated in arecess 10 at the rear end of the barrel extension 2 and alined with thegroove 5 is an ejection cam 11 which, as shown most clearly in Fig. 5,consists of a plate of proper dimension to fit within the recess 10 andprovided on its inner face with parallel longitudinal ribs 12 sodisposed that their inner opposed faces will aline with the upper andlower walls respectively of the groove 5 and normally lie flushtherewith. The inner edges of the ribs 12 are inclined toward'the wallof the barrel extension so that their front ends merge into the surfaceof the base plate of the ejection cam and, consequently, are flush withthe surface of the barrel extension. At the rear ends of the saidinclined edges are inwardly projecting lugs l3which are adapted to beengaged by the rear end of the shell as the latter is withdrawn from thebarrel. Between the ribs 12, the base plate of the ejection cam isprovided with a longitudinal slot 14 and the cam is held to the barrelextension by a rivet 15 inserted through said slot and through the wallof the barrel extension, as will be understood upon reference to Figs. 2and 3 of the drawing, so that the rivet also serves as a stop to limitthe sliding movement of the cam.

The gun equipped with my improved shell extractor is operated in exactlythe same manner as heretofore. Heretofore, however, when the shell wasextracted from the barrel, its rearward movement was limited because thecam 11 was fixed in place and the shell, consequently, could only moveuntil its flange was arrested by the stop lugs 13 of the cam. If theshell happened to be a trifle longer than the barrel extension, thefront end of the shell would remain in the rear end of the barrel and,therefore, the parts would jam and further manual manipulation would berequired to remove the shell. With the present device, when the shell isextracted from the barrel, the engagement of the rear end of the shellwith the stop lugs 13 will cause the slide to move length of the shell,however, is excee ly rearwardly With the shell, as indicated in Fig. 3,and the front end of the shell Will, therefore, be entirely Withdrawnfrom the barrel and will be ejected laterally in the usual manner. ItWill be noted that the sliding movement of the ejection cam is limitedbut the slot 14 may be made of such length, Without greatly weakeningthe cam, that a considerable Variation in the length of the shell Willbe accommodated and unless the shell should be so long that its excessof length, over the length of the barrel extension, exceeds the lengthof the slot 14,11;

Will be positively and easily discharged in the usual action of the gun.Such excessive apt to be noticed when it is attempted to place the shellin the gun and, therefore, the actual loading of the gun With such ashell is not apt to occur.

My improved ejection cam is exceedingly simpleand Willnot addappreciably to the cost of the gun While the efficiency of the gun willbe greatly enhanced.

Having thus described the invention, 1 claim:

The combination With the barrel extension of an automatic gun, of anejection cam seated in a recess at the rear end of the barrel extensionand having a longitudinal slot through its base portion, and a securingdevice inserted through the Wall of the barrel extension and throughsaid longitudinal slot of the ejection cam .to retain the cam in placeand permit :a limited sliding movement of the same.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature.

WILLIAM L. LITTLE.

